Scordato's intent revealed to early?

Use this forum to discuss the June 2018 Book of the Month"The Girl Who Knew da Vinci" by Belle Ami
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JHuschle519
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Re: Scordato's intent revealed to early?

Post by JHuschle519 »

FictionLover wrote: 30 Jul 2018, 22:17
JHuschle519 wrote: 23 Jul 2018, 02:28 I just finished reading The Girl Who Knew da Vinci, and while I enjoyed many aspects of the story there is one thing that I felt could have been done better. It seemed to me that Scordato's plan to steal the painting and murder Angela was brought to light much too early in the story; all the way back in Chapter 1. This took a lot of the suspense out the book for me because I knew what was coming. There was no surprise at the end when he ,finally, made his move. I think it would have been more exciting to not know who was after Angela and Alex right from the start. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?
Yes, I agree. I think the problem comes from the fact that this was really a paranormal romance.

In my review, I made a point of stating that this was not a thriller. Thrillers are really fast-paced and the main characters are always chasing the next clue to find out who is behind the plot. Sometimes things are so convoluted, you don't find out until the very end who is behind the crime. Also, there is a lot of tension, running, hiding, plotting, tactics. There was none of that here. Unless you consider long soapy showers suspenseful.

So I guess you needed Scordato around to have some suspense.
Excellent point. I suppose looking at the book from a strictly romance point of view, then Scordato becomes more of a simple plot device rather than a character that needs a lot of development. Thanks for replying, and I'll make sure to check out your review.
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Post by FictionLover »

JHuschle519 wrote: 30 Jul 2018, 23:53
FictionLover wrote: 30 Jul 2018, 22:17
JHuschle519 wrote: 23 Jul 2018, 02:28 I just finished reading The Girl Who Knew da Vinci, and while I enjoyed many aspects of the story there is one thing that I felt could have been done better. It seemed to me that Scordato's plan to steal the painting and murder Angela was brought to light much too early in the story; all the way back in Chapter 1. This took a lot of the suspense out the book for me because I knew what was coming. There was no surprise at the end when he ,finally, made his move. I think it would have been more exciting to not know who was after Angela and Alex right from the start. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?
Yes, I agree. I think the problem comes from the fact that this was really a paranormal romance.

In my review, I made a point of stating that this was not a thriller. Thrillers are really fast-paced and the main characters are always chasing the next clue to find out who is behind the plot. Sometimes things are so convoluted, you don't find out until the very end who is behind the crime. Also, there is a lot of tension, running, hiding, plotting, tactics. There was none of that here. Unless you consider long soapy showers suspenseful.

So I guess you needed Scordato around to have some suspense.
Excellent point. I suppose looking at the book from a strictly romance point of view, then Scordato becomes more of a simple plot device rather than a character that needs a lot of development. Thanks for replying, and I'll make sure to check out your review.
Thanks!

I try to read other reviews, too. But I have to admit that there are times I find things (like pages of reviews other than the forums ) on this website and think "Oh, how did I not see that before?"

And then I go back and try to remember where I found them, and can't! So following other reviewers always seems hit and miss to me! But I will look for yours, too.
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Post by [Valerie Allen] »

Bravo, well stated! My exact thoughts and sentiments. However, putting suspense aside, the time and attention that Alex extended toward Angela were absolutely appealing. He caters to her every need. And the chemistry between them is undeniable. So much so, you can actually feel it leap off the pages. I honestly don't think that there's a living creature that compares to Alex Caine. I'm just saying, it appears men like him are a figment of the imagination. But further agreed, the suspense factor of the story was long gone after Chapter 1.
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Post by RT_offscript »

Like many of you, I agree that Scordato's intent was revealed too early. As a result, I believe that many people do not consider "The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci" to be a thriller.

By unmasking Scordato's true nature in the first chapter, however, Belle Ami successfully created a 240-page book with decent character development and plot; and maybe the author's objective was to create a short and fun read. :)
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Post by pixiequeer »

While I do see your point, I also think it was important for Scordato to be revealed so early because him and Enrico are the reincarnated assassins from before, and you wouldn't really get that part of it if you didn't find out it was Scordato until the end. I think she makes it work for the story because of the visions and the references to the past lives. Otherwise, I really just don't see a way where she could wait until the end to reveal Scordato and Enrico AND still have them be the reincarnated assassins. At least, not in a way that fits with the rest of the story.

The main plot is supposed to be discovering the painting through their past lives without repeating history. If the main plot was running away from the killer, this would make sense, but it's not. You have to remember, this is not just a thriller/murder mystery. There are other aspects to take into consideration.
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Post by Moddesser Elahi »

I completely agree with JHuschle519. The thriller aspect of the novel could have been better if there would have been more suspense. The antagonist Scordato and his intentions have been revealed too early in the book. The book has a smooth flow though the thriller part has been compromised which is quite crucial according to me for a book in the genre. :hand:
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Post by Dusamae »

I agree, if it had been a thriller like the title of the book claimed then that is what would have happened. Given that it was more of a historical romance with some mystery and paranormal thrown in it wasn't really supposed to be about the whodunnit. I think if the author had given more substance to Angela and Alex, and the villain Scordato then the thriller part of the book would have been more believable.
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Post by David Horta Alonso »

Yes, his intentions were manifested early enough. The author ought to have used that as a point of creating suspense rather than introducing it early enough.
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Post by Taekwondoqueen »

I had the same exact thought about this. It seemed like a bad move on Belle Ami’s part, but I guess this is just her writing style. I also thought the same thing about the painting. The description made it seem like it would be a while before they figured out whether the painting was real or not, but they figured it out in the first few chapters. Maybe Belle Ami should spread out the timeline a bit more.
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Post by Beth KG »

by Beth KG

I think you are spot on! While there were many enjoyable things about this book, suspense was not one of them.
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Post by AshEileen2013 »

Definitely! You automatically knew he was the villain in this book and his very intent. It would have been better if it was kept a mystery for some time.
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Post by jjmainor »

JHuschle519 wrote: 23 Jul 2018, 02:28 I just finished reading The Girl Who Knew da Vinci, and while I enjoyed many aspects of the story there is one thing that I felt could have been done better. It seemed to me that Scordato's plan to steal the painting and murder Angela was brought to light much too early in the story; all the way back in Chapter 1. This took a lot of the suspense out the book for me because I knew what was coming. There was no surprise at the end when he ,finally, made his move. I think it would have been more exciting to not know who was after Angela and Alex right from the start. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?
I might agree except there weren't any other "suspects." No one else seems to be after the painting (unless a new contender pops up toward the end), so if we're hanging on a who-dunit, there aren't any options.
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Post by David Horta Alonso »

Dr. Scordato is surely cunning. He sexually harassed Angela, plans on killing her in order to get away with the paint. Revealing her intentions early enough was in no way dangerous to the plot development.
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Post by jessinikkip »

I hadn't thought about it before, but seeing it mentioned... yes, I think that came out way too early. The point of a thriller should be that arch of "who done it?" and figuring out along the way who the bad guy is. Knowing what he was doing and why kind of killed the who done it. The only thing I didn't know by halfway through the book was where the painting was, and that wasn't enough to keep me going.
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Post by Zephyr1988 »

JHuschle519 wrote: 23 Jul 2018, 02:28 I just finished reading The Girl Who Knew da Vinci, and while I enjoyed many aspects of the story there is one thing that I felt could have been done better. It seemed to me that Scordato's plan to steal the painting and murder Angela was brought to light much too early in the story; all the way back in Chapter 1. This took a lot of the suspense out the book for me because I knew what was coming. There was no surprise at the end when he ,finally, made his move. I think it would have been more exciting to not know who was after Angela and Alex right from the start. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?
I agree. If the author revealed Scordato's motive later on in the film, it would have had more of an impact and been a great plot twist.
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